This rumor comes after Joel Matip came off the pitch with a
groin problem on Sunday.
Liverpool fans were forced to watch yet another center-back limp
off of the pitch on Sunday. This time, it was the injury-prone Joel
Matip who went down with a groin injury in the second half. Matip
is scheduled for a scan later today, but based on his reaction as
it happened, chances are that Klopp will be without him for a
while.
That means right now, and for the foreseeable future, the only
center-back options available are Fabinho, Rhys Williams and Nat
Phillips. Of course, Klopp could get creative and put James Milner
or Andy Robertson there, but it’s a tough spot that they’re in
right now.
With the new year only a few days away — and the opening of the
January transfer
window with it — attention has gone to whether Klopp will bring
in any reinforcements to help cover the second half of the season.
Don’t get too excited though, if rumors are to be believed, the
boss has no interest in panic buying during this upcoming
window.
With so much talent already on the books, it’s understandable
that they may not want to invest in a long-term solution for a
short-term problem. The middle ground would be a getting a player
on loan, the way they did in Klopp’s first season with Steven
Caulker. Klopp faced a similar center-back shortage then, having
lost both Dejan Lovren and Martin Skrtel to injury. However,
Caulker only made four appearances for the club before the end of
the season.
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The move was more to plan for a worst case scenario where his
remaining two players, Mamadou Sakho and Kolo Toure, also became
injured. And if you are reading the names of these players and
marveling over the incredible upgrade in quality that this team has
seen since Klopp’s arrival, you are not the only one.
We know that Klopp has very specific requirements for all of his
players, but none moreso than his defenders. Williams and Phillips
have trained with the academy, where they focus on churning out
Klopp-ready youngsters. The boss is unlikely to want to invest
money or manpower into a player whose skills he doesn’t believe in,
not when he has two of the best players in the world at their
positions returning next season.
And then, of course, there’s the fact that other clubs will know
that Liverpool are in a bind at the moment. And since everyone is
looking for cash because of the pandemic, clubs will be looking to
wring every penny out of the Liverpool in exchange for a deal.
But if Liverpool don’t take advantage of the January transfer
window and Matip’s injury is long term, Fabinho gets hurt, or
both, it will be seen as a colossal error in judgment.
What do you think? Should the transfer committee shell out the
cash for another defender or stick it out with the choices they
have available to them?